Mechanisms of Isomorphism in Project-Based Organizations

Abstract

This is the published version of a paper published in Project Management Journal. Citation for the original published paper (version of record): Miterev, M., Engwall, M., Jerbrant, A. (2017) Mechanisms of isomorphism in project-based organizations. Project Management Journal, 48(5): 9-24 Access to the published version may require subscription. N.B. When citing this work, cite the original published paper. Permanent link to this version: This article challenges the dominant assumption of goal rationality behind temporary organizations' design in project-based organizations (PBOs). While extant literature posits that organizations strive to select the most appropriate project arrangements to fit particular task requirements at hand, findings from an in-depth ethnography-inspired case study suggest that projects in PBOs tend to imitate each other's structures, strategies, and practices with little consideration of the potential performance effects. Building upon the new institutionalism, this article conceptualizes the PBO as an organizational field of temporary and permanent organizations embedded in wider organizational and institutional fields and explicates isomorphic processes among temporary organizations in PBOs.

Modeling Organizational Project Management

“…The choice among the three identifies the organization's way of presenting themselves and the way of interacting with their customers in the marketplace. Decision for design choices are influenced, among others, by the nature of the business and the strategy of the organization (Miterev et al 2017b) and the degree of isomorphism in adapting existing design patterns (Miterev, Engwall, & Jerbrant, 2017a). The three choices present themselves as mutually exclusive in their respective domain, for example, a PBO oriented part of an organization will not apply any of the other two philosophies in this PBO domain, but maybe in other parts of the organization that do not fall under the PBO domain.…”

Value creation in projects: Towards a narrative perspective

“…Institutional pressures leading to isomorphism have also recently been recognised as presenting a challenge to the supposed goal-rationality which lies behind the design of temporary organisations in project-based-organisations (Miterev et al, 2017). We would argue that the dominant narratives of value creation are subject to similar isomorphic pressures within different institutional fields.…”

Top Management Attributes, Psychological Capital, and Green Accounting Effectiveness in Public-Private Partnership Context

“…In the context of PPP, institutional entrepreneurs and top management members are also “agents” of society, creating consistent technical and cognitive norms, models, scripts, and behavioral patterns (Déjean et al, 2004). In PPP projects, norms are shaped coordinating work among various organizational entities (Biesenthal et al, 2018), exploring the organizational dynamics of the project (Miterev et al, 2017). The process of institutional entrepreneurship is even far beyond the power of institutional entrepreneurs and can actively address the institutional and technical constraints that hinder PPPs (Biygautane et al, 2019).…”